I had decided to take my girls to sycamore highland park to get out of the house for the morning. I didn't plan for any hiking or anything but grabbed my camera to get some photos of birds or anything interesting. My girls played for awhile until they were board, so I gathered them up and but before leaving we went around the park to see what birds were around. We stopped at the top of the hill where I got a hummingbird hanging out around some lantana flowers. Then a California towhee eating some leftovers under a picnic table. Craving a little more "wildness" out of an observation, we went wondering into sycamore canyon wilderness park. This proved to be a bit of a challenge while navigating a stroller along the rough dirt trails packed down with the necessary park going essentials. Just a few minutes in some movement in a residential yard over the fence caught my attention. It was a hawk wrestling to get get a good footing on the trees thin branches. I noticed the hawk drop what appeared to be its lunch of either a small squirrel or large lizard. It struggled a little more with the tree before gliding over to the park fence. My daughter was excited to be this close to a big wild bird. We started to continue on the trail a bit in the direction of the hawk and stopped every couple feet to get a photo. I was surprised that it had not flown off as by now we were closer to this hawk then I had ever been to one. I could tell this was a juvenile or a young adult but also that it was having some issues with its left foot trying to stabilize its self on the fence, eventually just pulling it up against its body. We continued to creep up closer or at least as the trail would let us. The hawk watched us for awhile and then spread its wings and took off towards the park landing in the grass. It seemed to be walking ok enough making me feel a pillow better about its sore foot. We then proceeded along a little bit more on the trail as I fought move the stroller along. But to my surprise the hawk flew back to the fence just ahead of us again. In was shocked as this creature almost seemed curious of our presence. Curious to see just how close I could get, I parked and locked the stroller and told my daughter to stay next to it with her sister as I kept walking towards it. It seemed not to mind so much, showing no sign of being irritated or weary of me. After a few steps more and a few more photos I was within five feet of it. I stood there in awe that this wild creature was fine with this. I spoke softly to it which seemed to ease any existing tension. With my girls ten feet or so away looking on at this encounter, I continued to stand there with the hawk looking around at the scenery just as he was, scanning the horizon. It was a amazing, primitive feeling moment. It was nearly ten minutes or so til the hawk took off down the fence line toward the park entrance from where we came. Ready to head back into him and park we walked in the direction of the park. The hawk remains perched on the fence this time on both feet. As we pulled along were the trail was closest the hawk was standing U took a few more shots before it spread its wings one more time flying just over our heads and off toward the canyon. My three year old was in aww as was I. I know that it's never a good idea to approach a wild animal but this was truly a special encounter for us and I would like to believe that it's not just us as humans that experience these ancient, primitive conections, but that the animals we engage with in these encounters do as well.
